A mandatory review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico-Agreement on trade kicks into high gear next year as U.S. President Donald Trump continues his campaign to realign global trade and poach key industries from America's closest neighbours. Negotiations on the trade pact, better known as CUSMA, were a stress test for Ottawa during the first Trump administration. The trade talks were tense at...
A segment of the American news program "60 Minutes," pulled by CBS News prior to its U.S. airing, began circulating online Monday with the branding of Canadian broadcaster Global TV. Multiple media reports say the program was uploaded to StackTV, Global's streaming platform, though it was not available to watch as of late Monday. Global TV and its parent company...
Jason Jacques says he learned a lot about the importance of choosing his words carefully in his first few months as the interim parliamentary budget officer. His whirlwind ascent from obscure bureaucrat to high-profile thorn in the Liberal government's side began in late summer, when outgoing budget officer Yves Giroux's term was set to end without a formal successor in...
Alberta's election agency announced Monday it has approved a proposed referendum question on the province separating from Canada. The question seeks a yes or no answer to: "Do you agree that the province of Alberta should cease to be a part of Canada to become an independent state?" Elections Alberta said the proponents — the Alberta Prosperity Project and its...
Mission to deter Russian aggression in Baltic region already Canada's largest overseas deployment. Canada’s military operations command has embarked on a study about how the country’s NATO deployment in Latvia can be realistically sustained into the future, and one of options could involve more permanent basing, says a senior commander. Lt.-Gen. Steve Boivin, the commander of the Canadian Joint Operations...
A new national Liaison Strategies poll conducted over the weekend for the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada shows the Carney Liberals continuing to slide and now tied with the Conservatives at 38%. The Federal NDP stays steady at 12% nationally, and maintains 19% in British Columbia. Conducted from December 19-21, 2025, using Interactive Voice Response (IVR), the...
Nanos conducted a representative non-probability online survey of 1000 Ontarians, 18 years of age or older, between December 10 and 12, 2025. The sample is geographically stratified to be representative of Ontario.
Osman Azizov, who allegedly hunted Jewish women, has been released on bail. How warped are our values in the name of accommodation and diversity
Doug Ford for Prime Minister? It’s the question everyone asks me, in both official languages — even though Ontario’s premier can only speak one of them.
Mark Carney became Prime Minister on a promise to reduce Canadian dependence on the increasingly protectionist and unreliable United States under Donald Trump. “It’s clear the U.S. is no longer a reliable partner,” Mr. Carney said after taking office. “The old relationship” Canada had with the United States, he said, is over. Significant parts of his travel reflect this, with...
As Tim Houston stands in the Nova Scotia legislature, he looks around and begins to address the room. Houston says that when he was first elected premier, there was a freedom of information request that "gave (me) pause." The premier says he thinks he knows who sent the request in but can't be sure. The applicant had asked for the...
An important underlying purpose of the Combatting Hate Act is protecting communities of faith. Nobody should be intimidated or obstructed when they want to go pray. The act gives police clear tools to intervene when intimidation or obstruction of a community space occurs. It is an important signal that Parliament expects police and prosecutors to act to protect communities of...
Put the playlist on, and I’ll listen to everything from “Adeste Fideles” to “Petit Papa Noël.” I love Christmas music. But dancing among the carols and Christmas songs in my seasonal memory are a couple of other festive numbers, too.
The chickens are coming home to roost for Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. And as we prepare for 2026 to dawn, so many chickens are coming home she’s pretty much running a political poultry farm.
The world of politics often embraces contradictions. Canada faces a stark contradiction today. On the one hand, our country is dangerously divided, regionally and generationally. Both Quebec and Alberta may soon be holding referendums on sovereignty. Many younger Canadians living economically precarious lives resent the Boomers and Gen Xers, with their pensions, health care and other entitlements that millennials and...
MPs defect, unity frays and a leadership review looms for the Conservative Leader
He will have to face the fact that his opponent has been selling Tory policies better than he did — and do something about it. A year ago, Justin Trudeau was still determined to hang on as prime minister, still professing to believe he could win the next election against all odds and public evidence. If he’d held on, he’d...
I was standing in the back of a half-built warehouse in Kingston in April, watching Pierre Poilievre try to rouse his supporters. “We will reject,” the Conservative leader declared ominously, “the Century Initiative.” There were a few angry shouts from audience members who knew what he was talking about. Everyone else was silent. This radical scheme, designed by “multinational corporations”...
If the theme of 2025 in Canadian politics was to expect the unexpected, the ways in which the political world turned upside down will reverberate into 2026. Everyone will have their own surprise developments of this truly tumultuous year, but here are my top five picks for the big country-shaking shifts of 2025.
There is a great deal to love about Canada, but one of the greatest things is that this country will never have a Donald Trump. That thought crossed my mind as this narcissistic egomaniac addressed his countrymen last week in what could only be called an orgy of ego-liberation and industrial scale mendacity. One American commentator said it was as...
On Dec. 15, 2015, I stood in a hotel in downtown Ottawa as the commissioners of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission shared the 94 Calls to Action. I remember the room with auras of super-bright colour as if the children who were lost had travelled from the stars to share in the moment. We stood in awe of these leaders...
Sergio Marchi got himself elected to North York city council at the tender age of 26, and just two years later, became a Liberal MP, just in time to see his party thrashed by Brian Mulroney’s Progressive Conservatives in 1984. But he stuck around, eventually earning three different jobs in Jean Chretien’s cabinets between 1993 and 2000. He chronicles it...
Last week I carefully read the statement of strategic purpose of the Trump administration, a document published by every recent incoming administration within a year of its inauguration. The strategic statement has been received with misgivings by members of the Fortress America school that holds that the United States should be ready at all times to repulse any initiative from...
There’s an old clip going around on social media this week showing Stephen Harper on his feet in the Commons batting away a question about the supposed impropriety of a Liberal MP crossing over to join his Conservatives. It was 2006 and Harper was being accused of “seducing” Liberal David Emerson over to his side. The then-PM first shrugged it...
Ten months away from a crucial provincial election, the Quebec Liberal Party (QLP) finds itself without a leader. Pablo Rodriguez, elected head of the party just last June, was forced to resign following a series of internal disputes and allegations of improprieties in the funding of his leadership campaign. For Rodriguez, a kind, affable man, this is nothing short of...
As Energy Minister Tim Hodgson says he's getting 'a lot of inquiries' about supporting the Liberal agenda, the Power & Politics panel of party insiders discusses whether Prime Minister Mark Carney's policies may 'attract' enough opposition MPs to reach a majority in the House.
A few days after Michael Ma decided to cross the floor to the Liberals, Pierre Poilievre was asked whether the loss of another MP was a problem for his leadership of the Conservative Party. On the contrary, Poilievre argued, it was a problem for the leadership of Mark Carney. The prime minister was, in Poilievre's words, "trying to manipulate his...
Given the economic and geopolitical events of the past year, it’s tempting to say that Mark Carney’s introduction to elected politics has been a baptism by fire. On closer inspection, it has really been defined by the kind of cosmic luck that most politicians can only dream of. There’s no disputing that 2025 was an unprecedentedly disruptive year in the...
Canada is being battered by an especially bad flu season. None of this should be particularly surprising, since we had data from the southern hemisphere’s flu season to suggest once winter reared its head here we would be in for the same flu-induced misery as our cousins below the equator. In a normal country, this kind of advance notice would...
At some point, Danielle Smith is going to have to pick a side. For months now, Alberta’s premier has been catering to the separatists who dominate the membership of her United Conservative Party while insisting she doesn’t explicitly support their cause. But their appetite just keeps growing, and with Smith’s government clearing the way for a referendum on Alberta independence...
As Canada prepares to enter its second year navigating the aggressive trade policies of Donald Trump, it’s worth pausing a moment to take stock and remind ourselves of what will and won’t work as the focus shifts to the future of the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA). While most Canadians would agree that the tariff policies of Donald Trump have created challenges...
Pierre Poilievre’s weekend appearance on CBC with Rosemary Barton wasn’t remarkable for what was said. It was revealing for what still couldn’t be said. There was no acknowledgment that losing an election he was widely expected to win might merit reflection. No acceptance that losing his own seat could justify a rethink of a political style built almost entirely on...
I thought long and hard before going to a public Hanukkah candle lighting recently. I wouldn’t have gone if my grandson were with me. As it was, my husband asked me to promise to remain on the periphery of the crowd in case I had to run. We’ve been to Bondi Beach. It’s one of those picture-perfect beaches you see...
NDP leadership hopeful Avi Lewis earlier this month released his shoot-for-the stars climate policy, titled A Green New Deal for Canada. It’s a retooled shopping list of laudable ideas, starting with a complete ban on new fossil fuel extraction projects, which we know are the single biggest contributor to global warming. Lewis proposes investing billions in “clean energy, building retrofits...
Over lunch the other day, the talk was about how 2025 had triggered a surge of patriotism in this country on account of the back-of-the-hand treatment from the United States. “It’s extraordinary,” said Duncan Ault, a lawyer friend. “As a Canadian I feel a foot taller.” For much of our history we’ve been in the thrall of the U.S., so...
It was a surreal moment on a day full of such moments. Trevor Halford walked into the main chamber of the British Columbia legislature on Dec. 3 as interim leader of his Conservative Party of B.C., following an appointment by the party board. Hours earlier, 20 Conservative MLAs had released a letter in which they said that they had lost...
More than 30 years after Canada's military allowed women to serve in combat roles, it's now specifically designing uniforms and body armour to fit their bodies. For decades, female soldiers have been wearing uniforms designed primarily for men and some say it has made their jobs harder, contributed to injuries and hurt morale. Retired major Sandra Perron became the country's...
OTTAWA -- Immigration Minister Lena Diab issued new ministerial instructions that include requiring provincial or territorial attestation letters for study permits with the goal of capping foreign student applications at just under 310,000 in the new year.
The Liberals are preparing to bring forward new standalone legislation to address harmful content found online, reviving a Trudeau-era bill that failed to become law before this past year’s federal election, says a government source. The source, who asked to remain anonymous in order to speak freely, told The Hill Times the government was developing a new version of the...
Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers say they have reached tentative agreements. The deals announced Monday cover both the Urban Postal Operations and Rural and Suburban Mail Carriers bargaining units. CUPW's national board is recommending members accept the deals during ratification votes set to be held in early 2026.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has appointed a global investment banker and pension fund manager to be Canada's next ambassador in Washington. Carney's office said Mark Wiseman, who begins the role Feb. 15, will lead negotiations with the United States on a review of the continental free trade deal. Wiseman is a longtime friend of Carney who was among the first...
This time last year, the average Canadian might have struggled to pick Mark Carney's face out of a crowd. Now he's among the most recognizable figures in the country, and was selected The Canadian Press Newsmaker of the Year for 2025 in an annual survey of newsroom editors and leaders from across the country. The vote wasn't even close: Carney...
Canada is considering changes to its ban on foreign home buyers starting in 2027, its housing minister said, as the government looks for ways to increase the supply of affordable places to live.
Seven bills tabled since the start of the 45th Parliament began reached royal assent before the winter break, of which three, C-6, C-7 and C-17, were appropriation bills. Of the remaining bills still moving through the legislative process, several are 'core to the government’s overall agenda,' says Dan Arnold. Any legislation related to the border with the U.S. would be...
Canada needs clean energy and technology investments to meet emission targets: PM. Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada has too much regulation and not enough investments in clean energy and technology — and he's making his most direct repudiation yet of his predecessor's environmental policies. "Because I care about the issue fundamentally, I care about what gets done," Carney said...
The spring federal election saw voters elect four MPs who were born in the 2000s -- the first Canadians from that age cohort ever to take seats in the House of Commons. Eight months into the job, the young MPs -- representing ridings across the country -- say they think they're already making a difference. Liberal MPs Fares Al Soud...
U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff campaign appeared to move at a breakneck pace towards Canada's economy this year. But beyond threats of double-digit tariff rates and sharp pain in manufacturing-heavy industries, a key exemption has allowed the majority Canadian goods to continue to cross the southern border duty-free. Experts who spoke to The Canadian Press warned this saving grace for...
Study found Canadians were more likely to be swayed than Americans. Talking with an AI chatbot can successfully convince people to change their votes and could affect the outcome of future elections, according to a new study. The study, which included 1,530 Canadians, also found that the chatbots had more success convincing Canadians to switch their votes than it did...
It should have been a very bad day for David Eby's government. But on Dec. 3, the morning after the pending closure of the pulp mill in Crofton, B.C., was announced with the loss of 350 jobs, the political focus was on the leadership saga in the Opposition B.C. Conservatives, as 20 of the party's MLAs called on then-leader John...
Canada’s national energy regulator has postponed its report outlining future demand for fossil fuels, citing an “evolving energy and policy landscape.” The move comes as both Ottawa and Washington have recently scrapped numerous climate rules while Prime Minister Mark Carney has promoted oil and gas projects as “nation-building” endeavours. The regulator had expected to issue updated projections for “early in...
British Columbia legislator Dallas Brodie, who earlier this month was removed as leader of the OneBC party, says she has been reinstated. Brodie says on social media she has regained control of the party after negotiations following what she is describing as a "difficult 10 days." The party itself acknowledged Brodie's return in a brief social media post, saying it...
Federal public servants are expected to learn about job cuts in their departments when they return from their holiday break. Departments such as Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Environment and Climate Change and Employment and Social Development have told their staff already that news on job cuts will be shared in the new year. Ottawa is looking to cut program spending...
For companies that arrive cap-in-hand to pitch energy or mining projects that might meet Canada’s moment of economic reckoning, a sit-down with the most influential member of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s cabinet can be a novel and jarring experience. Tim Hodgson isn’t much for the pleasantries that usually kick off such meetings, sometimes at length, with other ministers. Nor does...
Several members of the government’s artificial intelligence task force say they are worried Ottawa has already fallen behind in the global race to capitalize on a burgeoning economic driver, but they believe the forthcoming AI strategy may provide an opportunity for Canada to catch up. Louis Têtu, executive chairman of the AI software multinational Coveo, said Canada has long suffered...
Canada's long-held consensus on immigration -- that it's a net positive for the country -- has been coming apart in recent years. Roughly half of the population thinks too many immigrants have been coming to Canada, according to several private polling firms. That parallels a government survey from November 2024, when 54 per cent of respondents to a phone survey...
Insects, bats, rodents and other pests have been spotted in federal buildings more than 500 times in the Ottawa area this year, as the government makes plans to get public servants to spend more time in the office. Amber Sabourin, a spokesperson for Public Services and Procurement Canada, said there were 549 confirmed reports of pests in 93 Crown-owned buildings...
At the Paris AI Action Summit in February, then-prime minister Justin Trudeau and other world leaders watched as U.S. Vice President JD Vance took the stage to rail against AI regulation. Vance's speech -- delivered with his face projected on a large screen between the intricately-carved pillars lining the stage at the historic Grand Palais -- marked the beginning of...
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's hand-picked panel re-examining the province's relationship with Ottawa says it's time to ditch the RCMP and hold a provincewide referendum on quitting the Canada Pension Plan. The Alberta Next panel, in a report with findings and recommendations, says creating a provincial pension plan was the most hotly debated topic among citizens and one that needs to...
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says Canadian voters know he’s a “fighter,” but that he needs to do a better job explaining what he’s actually fighting for. In a year-end interview with Global News anchor and executive editor Dawna Friesen, Poilievre said he has reflected on his leadership and approach after April’s disappointing election loss. One of his conclusions was that...
Canada's U.S. ambassador says empathy for everyday Americans is important. If you ask Canada's Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman how to get Trump-era Republicans on Canada's side, she'll tell you a story about a stuffed bison head. Hillman first came to Washington as deputy ambassador in 2017. She says around that time, Canada was trying to make inroads with...
Prime minister says AI, critical minerals are areas of concern. Prime Minister Mark Carney has begun to lay out publicly what he sees as boundaries when dealing with China, as his government wades into a new relationship with the economic giant. Carney, who earlier this year called China one of Canada's biggest security threats, has more recently spoken openly about...
With both Chantal and Bruce away this week, a special program for our final Good Talk of 2025. Bob Rae, fresh from his five years at the United Nations as Canada's Ambassador, and with his wealth of political experience, joins us to talk Canada and politics. It's a wide ranging discussion, so strap in for an engaging Good Talk.
'Many New Democrats are allergic to fundraising,' report says. The federal NDP released its internal campaign review Friday, largely avoiding casting blame on senior party officials and instead citing issues that were beyond the control of New Democrats for its worst election loss. "The overall verdict from campaign staff was that the NDP ran a technically solid campaign in a...
MONTREAL -- One of Pablo Rodriguez's main rivals during the Quebec Liberal leadership race earlier this year says he will not run to replace him.
A former member of Premier Danielle Smith's government caucus says Elections Alberta has approved the name for a new political party, after the government banned a list of monikers it could use, including "conservative." Airdrie-Cochrane MLA Peter Guthrie announced in a social media post on Thursday evening that the new party will be known as the Progressive Tory Party of...
AP Media Writer (AP) -- An internal CBS News battle over a "60 Minutes" story critical of the Trump administration has exploded publicly, with a correspondent charging it was kept off the air for political reasons and news chief Bari Weiss saying Monday the story did not "advance the ball."
NEW YORK (AP) -- The Senate's top Democrat urged his colleagues Monday to take legal action over the Justice Department's incremental and heavily redacted release of records pertaining to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
PHOENIX (AP) -- Vice President JD Vance said Sunday the conservative movement should be open to everyone as long as they "love America," declining to condemn a streak of antisemitism that has divided the Republican Party and roiled the opening days of Turning Point USA's annual convention.
PHOENIX (AP) -- The next presidential election is three years away, but Turning Point USA already knows it wants Vice President JD Vance as the Republican nominee.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has appointed a global investment banker and pension fund manager to be Canada's next ambassador in Washington. Carney's office said Mark Wiseman, who begins the role Feb. 15, will lead negotiations with the United States on a review of the continental free trade deal. Wiseman is a longtime friend of Carney who was among the first...
Canada's U.S. ambassador says empathy for everyday Americans is important. If you ask Canada's Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman how to get Trump-era Republicans on Canada's side, she'll tell you a story about a stuffed bison head. Hillman first came to Washington as deputy ambassador in 2017. She says around that time, Canada was trying to make inroads with...
Senior Global Affairs leadership and a parliamentary aide to Prime Minister Mark Carney are in China now for talks that could pave the way for him to visit next year. Mr. Carney, looking for new export markets because of an increasingly protectionist United States under President Donald Trump, is trying to patch up relations with Beijing after a severe diplomatic...
A Liberal MP says she was shoved multiple times by Israeli border officials as her delegation was denied entry to the West Bank Tuesday morning. Ontario MP Iqra Khalid says she was pushed after trying to check on a member of the roughly 30-person delegation who was pulled aside for additional questioning after the group had been at the Allenby...
The National Council of Canadian Muslims says a delegation of Canadians that includes six members of Parliament was denied entry to the West Bank at the Israeli border Tuesday morning. Israel's embassy in Canada says the group was denied entry because of links to Islamic Relief Worldwide, which is listed as a terror entity by Israel. B.C. NDP MP Jenny...
The year 2025 was a year of volatility, experimentation, and recalibration across Asia and Canada. Much of the volatility stemmed from U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff agenda, which upended global trade norms and injected new uncertainty into supply chains. China, meanwhile, pressed ahead with an increasingly assertive industrial strategy, even as it contended with slower domestic growth and structural...
Even modest Canadian engagement with China may be judged less on its merits than on how it is interpreted in the U.S. within a framework designed to ‘wind down adversarial outside influence.’
On November 4th, Budget 2025 shifted the Carney government’s policy priorities to economic growth and national defence in response to a rupture in Canada-US trade relations and new NATO commitments. Public finance with a focus on capital investment is the principal instrument of change. In line with this strategy, a closer look at Canada’s sagging productivity suggests the next budget...
A collection of SubStack publishing within Canadian public affairs.
You may want to dust off your Bescherelles, Canadian politicos: the battle for the future of Québec is where things are going to happen in 2026. In case you missed it, today the new leader of the Québec Liberal Party, Pablo Rodriguez, announced his resignation. His resignation was precipitated by a terrible, scandalous month for the QLP — one that...
The federal government this week dumped its load of annual statistics about citizens’ use of the Access to Information Act.
Stephen Thorne has died. The bitter, unexpected death of a tough journalist who wrote about death but couldn’t report on his own. He’d have written a damn fine story about it. I was his boss for years, in Halifax and Ottawa, though Stephen had no time for bosses. He followed his nose for stories whether or not anybody asked for...
Noor Azrieh and Sam Konnert look back on the moments that defined Canadian politics this year. We revisit viral clips, media meltdowns, Question Period fever dreams, floor crossers, immigration fights, Alberta separatism, national projects (that may or may not exist yet), and the growing sense that everything is moving very fast… but also somehow not at all.
David Herle, Scott Reid, Jordan Leichnitz, and Kory Teneycke provide insights on the latest in Canadian politics.
Tony Keller joins the Everything Political panel with former MPs Martha Hall Findlay and Tony Clement to discuss his book “Borderline Chaos: How Canada Got Immigration Right, and Then Wrong,” the historical consensus on immigration, the rise in levels under Trudeau, the temporary foreign workers program, if the Canadian consensus on immigration has been broken, where we are now, and...
After eight years in Washington, Canada's U.S. ambassador Kirsten Hillman is coming home. Over that time, she has seen Canada's relationship with the United States transform, for better and for worse. As she prepares to step down from her ambassadorship, she explains in an extended interview with host Catherine Cullen how she’s built critical connections in the U.S. capital —...
